Air Traffic Shutdown in Spain Causes Flight Disruptions Worldwide

Spain’s national carrier Iberia airline, alongside many other airlines, were forced to cancel their flights earlier on today due to a sudden strike by Spanish Air Traffic Control. The strike is due to the labor conflict of the air traffic controllers in Spain, in a result of policy changes.

For flights to and from Spain, the air space over Madrid, the Canary Islands, and Majorca is closed and is likely to remain closed until 01:00 a.m, Spanish Mainland time, as informed by Euro control. Hundreds of flights were delayed and thousands were stranded in Madrid, Palma de Mallorca, Menorca, and Ibiza. The country’s airport operator, AENA, told the BBC that it was forced to close airspace after workers refused to work or did not show up for work at all.

The Government has called for the Army to take over the control and customers are advised not to go to the affected airports without collecting up to date information from concerned departments over the phone or online.

At present, the national flagship carrier Iberia, that has recently undergone a merger agreement with British Airways, is said to have canceled many flights for the day. The airline is in continuous process of updating the information on its web site and social media. Sources at Iberia airline have also said that the airline will launch a flight recovery plan shortly, once the air space has been opened. In the recovery plan, long haul flights departing in the early morning will have priority. Customers with a ticket for flights canceled today are being advised to contact their travel agencies to get updated information on flight rescheduling and rerouting. Passengers can also check their flight status online on airline or airport websites.

According to an AENA spokesperson’s statement to CNN “The air traffic controllers are massively abandoning their posts,” she further stated that apparently an air traffic controller shift change was due to happen late Friday and AENA is hopeful the next batch of controllers will show up to work. At present, the situation is under the control of the National Army.